NEWS

PLAYOFF SCENARIOS

Newport

• Clinches South Division with win tonight; if Mystic wins tonight, Gulls would conclude suspended game with Ocean State tomorrow morning at Old Mountain Field (suspended in sixth inning with score tied at 1-1 in a seven-inning game) before making regularly scheduled trip to North Adams tomorrow night
• If tied with Mystic at 26-16, would win division based on record vs. Ocean State (4-2)

Mystic

• Can win South Division with win at Newport tonight plus win at Keene tomorrow AND Newport losses at Ocean State tomorrow morning (suspended in sixth, score tied at 1-1 in a seven-inning game) and at North Adams tomorrow night
• If tied with Newport at 26-16, would finish second based on record vs. Ocean State (2-4)

Vermont

• Can win North Division with one win: either tonight vs. Keene or tomorrow vs. Sanford
• Would only lose division with two losses and two Sanford wins

Sanford

• Can only win North Division with win tonight at Valley and win tomorrow vs. Vermont, as well as Vermont loss vs. Keene tonight

North Adams/Valley

• North Adams leads Valley by one game and can clinch fourth and final playoff spot outright with two wins in last two games, or one win and one Valley loss, or two Valley losses
• If two teams are tied in the standings after Saturday’s game, they would meet in a play-in game on Sunday at MacKenzie Stadium (Valley won season series, 4-2)

Ocean State/Plymouth

• If Plymouth sweeps its doubleheader with Danbury on Friday (final two games of regular season), and Ocean State goes winless vs. New Bedford on Friday, against Newport on Saturday (if necessary), and then against Danbury on Saturday, both would be tied in the standings and would force a play-in game on Sunday at a site to be determined
• Because Ocean State and Plymouth finished regular season series 3-3, a coin toss by the Commissioner would determine the site of the play-in game on Sunday

Last Night’s Games:
Ocean State 7, Newport 0 (F/7): In the first of a two-game set at Old Mountain Field, Ocean State exploded for seven runs and held visiting Newport scoreless throughout, as the Waves picked up an incredibly importantly 7-0 victory against the Gulls on Thursday afternoon. Chuckie Robinson (Southern Miss.) homered and drove in two for the hosts, while starter Ryan Gray (Trinity) improved to 4-0 after tossing six scoreless. The second scheduled game between the two squads was suspended in the sixth with the score tied at 1-1; no reschedule date has been set as of this posting and will be announced when it is determined that the completion of the game is necessary for the league standings.

New Bedford 11, Plymouth 2: A late-game surge led New Bedford to a crucial 11-2 road win against Plymouth on Thursday night, clinching a playoff spot for the Bay Sox while dealing a crushing blow to the Pilgrims’ postseason hopes. Leading by one heading to the seventh, New Bedford exploded for nine runs over the next two innings, as the visitors racked up 15 hits while benefiting from five Plymouth errors. Outfielder Carlos Ortiz (North Carolina Central) homered and drove in three for the Bay Sox, who also got a solid start from righty Gabriel Rodriguez (Eastern Florida State College), who moved to 4-0.

Keene 6, Valley 5: Reduced to the role of spoiler, Keene has embraced that position quite well, as for the second night in a row the Swamp Bats handed a big loss to a potential playoff squad after edging Valley, 6-5, at MacKenzie Stadium. After the hosts tied the game at 5-all in the seventh, the Swamp Bats went ahead for good on an RBI single off the bat of Chris Hardardt (Hofstra). All-Star reliever Zach Willeman (Kent State) worked around a base hit in the ninth to lock down his fourth save, and fellow bullpen mate Bennett Sousa (Virginia) got his first win after sitting down four batters over an inning and a third. The Blue Sox are still very much in the thick of things; sitting a game back of fourth-place North Adams, Valley needs to gain just one game over the next two days to force a play-in game on Sunday.

Sanford 5, Vermont 0: Stellar pitching kept Sanford’s hopes for a division crown alive, as the Mainers downed division-leading Vermont, 5-0, on Thursday night at Goodall Park. While the Mountaineers still lead by two games with two days left, the North Division title is still up for grabs; a Sanford win over Valley and a Vermont loss against Keene tonight would set up a winner-take-all matchup for the division tomorrow night between the two teams in Montpelier. Blake Morgan (North Carolina Central) tossed a stellar seven innings for the Moose, fanning six while giving up none with six strikeouts. Johnny Slater (Michigan) homered out of the No. 9 spot and drove in two runs to highlight the offense.

Today's Games:
Plymouth @ Danbury 5/6:30pm
Sanford @ Valley 6:30pm
Keene @ Vermont 6:30pm
North Adams @ Laconia 6:30pm
Ocean State @ New Bedford 6:30pm
Mystic @ Newport 6:35pm

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The New England Collegiate Baseball League is a wooden bat college summer league that fields teams in all six New England states. Partially funded by Major League Baseball, the NECBL started play in 1994 and has sent over 100 alumni to the Major Leagues. For continuing coverage of the NECBL, visit NECBL.com and follow the league on Twitter and on Facebook.